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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09981ORDINANCE NO. 9981 AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE FISCAL YEAR 2021 STAFFING ORDINANCE BY CHANGING THE TITLE OF THE PRETREATMENT SPECIALIST CLASSIFICATION WITHIN THE WASTEWATER DEPARTMENT WHEREAS, it is necessary to revise the position for the ultimate efficiency and functionality for the Wastewater Department; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF PUEBLO, that: (brackets indicate matter being deleted, underscore indicates matter being added) SECTION 1. The following section captioned “Wastewater-Treatment Plant” “of Ordinance No. 9852, being the 2021 Staffing Ordinance, is amended as follows: Wastewater-Treatment Plant Assistant WWTP Superintendent 1 Administrative Technician 1 Lab Analyst II 2 Lab Analyst III 2 Laboratory Pretreatment Specialist 2 Pretreatment Manager 1 \[Pretreatment Specialist\] WW Permit Compliance Specialist 1 Senior WWTP Maintenance Mechanic 2 WRF Worker/WRF Worker I/WRF Worker II/WW Operator B 7 Wastewater Operator A 5 WW Electrical Specialist 1 WW Instrument & Controls Specialist 1 WW Maintenance Coordinator 1 WW SCADA Coordinator 1 WWTP Inventory Control Specialist 1 WWTP Lab Supervisor 1 WWTP Maintenance Mechanic 1 WWTP Superintendent 1 Total 32 SECTION 2. The officers and staff of the City are authorized to perform any and all acts consistent with the intent of this Ordinance to implement the transactions described therein. SECTION 3. This Ordinance shall be deemed to amend the Fiscal Year 2021 Budget with respect to the allocation of positions within the Wastewater Department and shall become effective on the date of final action by the Mayor and City Council. Action by City Council: Introduced and initial adoption of Ordinance by City Council on July 26, 2021 . Action by City Council: Introduced and initial adoption of Ordinance by City Council on July 26, 2021 . Final adoption of Ordinance by City Council on August 9, 2021 . President of City Council Action by the Mayor: ☒ Approved on August 12, 2021 . □ Disapproved on based on the following objections: _ Mayor Action by City Council After Disapproval by the Mayor: □ Council did not act to override the Mayor's veto. □ Ordinance re-adopted on a vote of , on □ Council action on _______ failed to override the Mayor’s veto. President of City Council ATTEST City Clerk City Clerk’s Office Item # R-6 BACKGROUND PAPER FOR PROPOSED ORDINANCE COUNCIL MEETING DATE: July 26, 2021 TO: President Lawrence W. Atencio and Members of City Council CC: Nicholas A. Gradisar, Mayor VIA: Marisa Stoller, City Clerk FROM: Marisa Pacheco, Human Resources Director Nancy Keller, Wastewater Director SUBJECT: AN ORDINANCE AMENDING THE FISCAL YEAR 2021 STAFFING ORDINANCE BY CHANGING THE TITLE OF THE PRETREATMENT SPECIALIST CLASSIFICATION WITHIN THE WASTEWATER DEPARTMENT SUMMARY: The Wastewater Department requests to adjust its staffing by changing the title of the vacant position of Pretreatment Specialist to WW (Wastewater) Permit Compliance Specialist to more accurately reflect the position duties and responsibilities, qualification required and mirror industry standards. PREVIOUS COUNCIL ACTION: On December 28, 2020 Ordinance No. 9852 was approved by City Council. This Ordinance provided authorized staffing for Fiscal Year 2021. BACKGROUND: At the end of May, the City’s Pretreatment Specialist position became vacant due to a retirement. This offered the opportunity to analyze the position, duties and what is truly needed in the position as the regulatory requirements under the Environmental Protection Agency and operational needs have shifted substantially over the last several years. Currently the Pretreatment program of the Wastewater Department consists of the Pretreatment Manager, one full-time Pretreatment Specialist and two Lab/Pretreatment Specialist that alternate between the Lab and Pretreatment. When the Pretreatment Specialist was originally defined, this position only required sampling and minimal data handling. Over the last few years, the program has grown significantly due to increased regulations required by EPA for businesses and industries as well as new industries moving into Pueblo that require local permits to be issued with compliance requirements per EPA regulations. The Pretreatment Specialist title does not accurately reflect the true nature of the evolved duties of the position and therefore a title change to WW (Wastewater) Permit Compliance Specialist is proposed which is more of an industry standard title. The Pretreatment program continues to keep track of the permitted industries paperwork and compliance issues and the fats, oils, and grease program, and the septic haulers. In addition to the expansion of the Industrial Waste Surveys that require all businesses in Pueblo to be evaluated to determine if they need a Pretreatment permit, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and EPA have adopted new regulations that the Pretreatment staff are having to add to Pueblo’s program. These are described below:  Per/Poly alkali substances (PFAS)-the State of Colorado in the implementation of Policy 20-1 has stated that POTWs with Pretreatment Programs will be required to do source control for PFAS. This requirement will require the Pretreatment Program to do sampling within Pueblo to determine sources of PFAS and whether the source is residential or commercial. When the source is commercial the program will have to work with the company to determine the best way to control the discharge of PFAS into the sanitary sewer.  Pharmaceuticals-the federal government passed a hazardous waste regulation that states that pharmaceuticals are hazardous waste and must be disposed of as hazardous waste and not into the sanitary sewer. The program will have to work with businesses to ensure that the pharmaceuticals are disposed of properly.  Industrial Waste Surveys-the program is continuing the process of reviewing and categorizing the types of businesses that are in the City of Pueblo. This process requires obtaining information on what businesses could be discharging into the sanitary sewer and determining whether the business will be required to obtain a discharge permit. If more information is needed the Pretreatment Manager may require an inspection before a determination can be made.  Dental Amalgam-The new dental category requires the program to keep track of both new dental offices and existing offices to ensure the dental amalgam waste is disposed of properly and the certification statement is turned in on time. These programs have added significantly to the workload not only in terms of volume but complexity and consequence of error. The Pretreatment Manager will need to have qualified personnel to implement existing and new requirements by federal and state regulations with this position being critical in the program’s success. EPA requires sufficient resources and qualified personnel as stated in 40 CFR Part 403.8(f)(3). EPA audits can result in Federal fines if violations are found. The revised title accurately reflects the permit compliance responsibilities of the position in question, enhanced qualifications of knowledge of EPA regulations, the ability to assist with compliance inspections and inspection follow up to include legal actions and notice of violations. This ordinance does not add an FTE to the staffing levels of the Wastewater Department. FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS: The change in title and qualifications will also necessitate a salary range change which is proposed in a subsequent ordinance. The cost of the change will be approximately $2,057.94 for the remainder of 2021. The additional funding will come from the Wastewater Utility Enterprise Fund and can be absorbed by existing budget dollars. BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: None. STAKEHOLDER PROCESS: The position is in the Pueblo Association of Government Employees (PAGE) bargaining unit and will remain in the unit. PAGE union leadership have reviewed the proposed changes through the labor management process in June of 2021 and the changes were met without objection. ALTERNATIVES: The no action alternative would be to retain the current title of the classification, which is operationally undesirable, not consistent with industry standard and will not accurately reflect the duties and qualifications required to perform the job duties. RECOMMENDATION: Approval of the Ordinance.